Malda - West Bengal

Malda has a rich colonial history and is well known for its natural beauty and the rivers. It has seen many great rulers in the past from the Buddhist, Hindus and the Muslim.

The district experienced extreme climate conditions and is found to be a very important district in West Bengal. During the British rule it was known as the English Bazaar.

Location of Malda

Malda is situated on the confluence of the rivers Kalindi and Mahananda. It is located on latitude range is 24 degree 40 ' 20" N to 25 degree 32'08" N and longitude range is 87 degree 45' 50" E to 88 degree 28'10" E. The district occupies an area of 3,733.66 sq KM. the district is surround by Murshidabad district to the south, North Dinajpur to the north, and Bangladesh to the east. The west side shares its borders with Jharkhand and Bihar.

Malda district is well connected with roads and railway transport to different parts of the country. The railway station found here is named as Malda town. Most of the trains that are bound for North Bengal and North eastern states pass through Malda town station. The district also has National Highway 34 and the second National Highway No that passes through the district is NH-81. The head quarter is located at Ingraj Bazar. There are plenty of roads that connect to major towns like the Manik Chak, Maldah, Habibpur, Bamangola, Kahrab, Harishchadrapur, Samsi, Kaliachak and Bahgabanpur.

The Mahananda River divides Malda district into two regions. The Ganga River flows along the south western boundary. Some of the other rivers are the Tangoan, Kalindri, Bhagirathi, Punarbhaba and Pagla.

Malda profile

Malda had a population of 3,997,970 according to 2011 report and ranks 58th in India. The density of population per square kilometer is 1,071. The district recorded a sex ratio of 939 females per 1000 males. The literacy rate is 62.71 percent.

The district comprises of 59 percent of Muslim people, 40 percent Hindus and one percent of other religion. The language spoken here is Urdu, Bengali, Hindi and Maithili. There are also some regional languages as well.

Places of interest

Malda is a beautiful place and is rich in history. It boosts of various monuments, mosques, temples and various other buildings from the British and pre-British rule. The Jama Masjid, Nimsari tower, Raiganj bird sanctuary, museum, ruins of Gaur and Pandua etc are some of the interesting places to visit in Malda.